HandyQRCodeWhat is an ITF-14 barcode?
ITF-14 is the barcode on outer cartons and cases: the brown box that holds 6, 12 or 24 retail units. It carries a 14-digit number, the GTIN-14 (often called DUN-14), which identifies that packaging level, not the single product. The bars are wide and simple so they can be printed directly on corrugated board and scanned in warehouses from a distance.
Where is it used?
- Warehouses and distribution centres, for receiving, picking and stock counts by the case.
- Wholesale and cash-and-carry, where whole cases are sold.
- Not at the shop checkout: the single product inside still needs its own EAN-13 or UPC-A.
How to make an ITF-14 barcode
- Take the product’s EAN-13 and drop its last digit (the check digit), leaving 12 digits.
- Put an indicator digit from 1 to 8 in front of them. Use a different indicator for each packaging level, for example 1 for a case of 12 and 2 for a pallet layer.
- Enter these 13 digits above. The 14th digit, the check digit, is added automatically.
- Download as SVG for the carton printer, or PNG at 4× for labels. For many cases at once, use Batch from CSV.
The 14 digits and the check digit
A GTIN-14 is the indicator digit, the first 12 digits of the product’s EAN-13 and a new check digit, calculated with the same modulo 10 rule as EAN-13. Example: EAN-13 5901234123457 → first 12 digits 590123412345 → with indicator 1: 1590123412345 → check digit 4 → 15901234123454. The check digit calculator does the same for a whole list. The check digit of the GTIN-14 is not the same as the EAN-13’s, which is why it has to be calculated again.
Sizes and printing
- At 100 % the narrow bar is about 1 mm and the bars about 32 mm tall, so an ITF-14 is roughly 15 cm wide. GS1 allows it smaller, down to a narrow bar of about 0.5 mm; check the exact minimum with your GS1 office or customer.
- Leave a clear margin of at least 10 narrow bars (about 1 cm at 100 %) on both sides. Barcodes made here include it.
- When printing directly on corrugated board, GS1 specifies a bearer bar: a thick frame around the code, or bars above and below it, which stops misreads where the printing plate presses unevenly. This generator does not draw it; your carton printer can add it, or you can add a rectangle in your design software.
- Print on two adjacent sides of the carton where possible, so one is always visible on a pallet.
ITF-14 or GS1-128?
ITF-14 holds only the GTIN-14. When a logistics label also needs a batch number, a best-before date or a serial shipping container code (SSCC), retailers ask for a GS1-128 label instead, which combines several data fields with application identifiers. This generator makes plain Code 128 but not GS1-128, so use it for ITF-14 and for your own internal labels.